Roadside Distractions

If you’re like most commuters, everyday you drive past the exact same houses, same businesses, same peculiar landmarks. Did you know the Milk Farm along 50 was a teen hangout in the 1930s where kids had milk drinking competitions? Did you know the Rancho Cordova drive-in is only one of 389 in the country? Or that the castle on I-80 was built by current resident and eccentric hair dresser Jerry Lee? There are so many stories we miss speeding by at 65 miles an hour. We’re slowing down, asking some questions and investigating these roadside distractions.

Why is there a cluster of small buildings just off Bradshaw in Rancho Cordova? There’s a mini McDonald’s, a shrunk-down Capitol Building. Get the story behind Safetyville USA in the latest installment of Roadside Distractions.

The large concrete cylinders peppering the Sacramento skyline blend into the overall cityscape. But this huge, multi-purpose structure east of downtown is worth exploring. We take a peek inside, in the latest installment of “Roadside Distractions.”

A life-sized hotdog man hungrily licking his lips while squirting ketchup on his forehead stands atop an unmarked red and black building at the intersection of Alhambra Blvd. and T Streets. A reader asked us to investigate this roadside distraction.

Roseville residents will tell you the big red sculpture along north Interstate 80 is a rose. But a bit of research found otherwise. As part of the Roadside Distraction series, Capital Public Radio got the story behind the sculpture.

Drive along Interstate-80 in Dixon, Calif. and a huge, white figure looms in the distance. At first, you can’t tell what it is, but as you speed past, a dinosaur comes into view. A dinosaur. At a pumpkin patch. What does one have to do with the other

A normal-looking mileage sign along the freeway in West Sacramento causes motorists to take a second glance. Placerville, South Lake Tahoe and Ocean City Maryland? What’s that all about? We tracked down the man responsible for the sign.